What are the measures to control Communalism?
Following are some significant steps that can be taken to control communalism;
1. Role of Law and Order Administration
The police have an important role to play in intercepting and diffusing communal riots and flare-ups before it assumes huge proportions. They should act responsibly to combat violence and work with the cooperation of peace committees and members of conflicting communities to resolve tension.
2. Role of Education
The curricula should be devoid of any communal content and partial views about particular religions. It should in fact teach secular principles, appreciation and respect for all religions. Schools and higher educational institutions should use various teaching aids promoting national values and communal harmony. Teachers should be trained to motivate students to conduct community programmes with involvement from their parents, neighbours and others to promote secularism, nationalism, cooperation and tolerance.
3. Role of Religious Leaders
Religious leaders have an important role to play as their preaching is followed by the masses. People look up to their leaders and hence these leaders should teach the importance of communal harmony through their discourses.
4. Role of Media
The media should act responsibly and avoid delivering news in a manner that will further encourage violence. Instead the media should identify and expose communal elements. It should create a forum for discussion where information about the ill effects of communal activities is disseminated.
5. Role of NGOs
NGOs should go for large-scale publicity campaigns in media promoting communal harmony and national unity. They should draw public focus on more pressing national problems and educate people about the ill consequences of riots and destruction based on religious intolerance.
6. Ban on Communal Political Parties
The political parties having any direct or indirect connections with communal forces should be derecognized by the government .They should not be allowed to play with the religious sentiments of the public and exploit them for their political gains. This will help reinforce harmony among various communities.
7. Public Awareness
Public awareness needs to be raised about the harmful impact of communalism. Our constitution, which labels India as a secular nation makes provisions to protect the interests of all religions and goes beyond the code of any religion. Hence one must learn to put national interests above one’s religious views.
8. Security
All communities must be treated equally. The people belonging to smaller communities should not feel isolated. Instead confidence should be instilled in them so that they feel safe and secure to uninhibitedly partake in the growth of the nation.